ARK Group is a leading stabilisation and development company, combining a global outlook with community-level engagement and innovative approaches to generate opportunity and sustainable positive social change.

We specialize in complex and challenging environments, providing policy-relevant insights and delivering cost-effective, impactful programming in support of the following UN Sustainable Development Goals – Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, Reduced Inequalities, Gender Equality and Partnerships for the Goals.

Programme Overview

ARK is responding to an RFP for a 5-year UK-funded programme that aims to enhance Kenyan capacity and capability to reduce conflict and violence through improvements in responses to violent incidents and crime, including VAWG.

The project’s geographical focus is in northern/coastal counties but it will support police reform at national, county and local levels to develop a more integrated approach to tackling five types of inter-related violence: inter-communal conflict, criminal violence, violence against women and girls, violent extremism and election violence.

The programme will focus on six inter-related work streams:

Police reform

Tackling violence against women and girls

Peace building to address inter-communal conflict

Countering violent extremism (CVE)

Conflict sensitive development in the north/coastal regions

Enhancing elections security for a peaceful general election in 2022

The programme manager will work as the ARK lead to manage three consortium partners and an extended project team, liaising with ARK’s senior management team and reporting directly to the client.

Key Responsibilities

Provide overall progamme strategic direction, technical leadership and management of the consortium and project partners, ensuring that short and long-term program objectives are being tracked and met.

Ongoing relationship management with the donor, all key stakeholders within the Kenyan government host government, and other key partners to ensure programme implementation is responding to stated objectives within cost and time constraints.

Ensure implementation of all activities is carried out in accordance with ARK’s and donor’s policies and guidelines. This includes recruitment, performance management, security, staff development and training, and disciplinary action.

Work with the finance team, to ensure commitment of adequate resources from approved budgets to support project implementation and ensure that budgets are spent in accordance with donor funding and donor regulations within the appropriate timeframe.

Oversee the work of the monitoring and evaluation team to ensure that lessons are being identified and learned and that project activities are being adapted as appropriate based on ongoing learning.

Ensure all project cycle management and project management tools such as logical frameworks, work plans, budgets and forecasts, monitoring and evaluation plans and indicator tracking are properly used and updated.

Provide regular reporting on all aspects of project implementation, addressing possible risks and challenges with appropriate internal stakeholders to resolve these, or escalate to the donor as appropriate.

Requirements

At least 12 years relevant professional experience, leading the implementation of complex, multi-million dollar projects in challenging environments relating to police reform or peace building.

Demonstrated experience in project cycle management, project-level monitoring and evaluation, programme budgeting and programme implementation on similar complex programming, as well as active management of diverse teams and cultures.

Previous experience working on police reform or peace building with the Government of Kenya or in East Africa preferred.

Previous DFID project management experience preferred.

Demonstrable experience of effective consortium and partner management, as well as management of multinational teams and Subject Matter Experts.

Experience delivering or integrating Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) and/or Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) pillars in ongoing programming and existing networks with relevant government and non-government organizations working on these issues.

Project management training certification.

Excellent English language written and oral communication skills.

Commitment to team-building and ability to develop other team members.

ARK Group is a leading stabilisation and development company, combining a global outlook with community-level engagement and innovative approaches to generate opportunity and sustainable positive social change.

We specialize in complex and challenging environments, providing policy-relevant insights and delivering cost-effective, impactful programming in support of the following UN Sustainable Development Goals – Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, Reduced Inequalities, Gender Equality and Partnerships for the Goals.